Review: C2401 HOOVER COMMERCIAL LIGHTWEIGHT BACKPACK VACUUM
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Being someone who is pretty OCD, i absolutely hate sweeping our hardwood floors. Having animals that shed fur constantly, my eyes are always drawn to the stray hairs that seem to flow over the dust mop only to land on the a freshly swept spot. I haven’t had much luck with vacuums either, as an upright vacuum doesn’t work very well and a shop vac tends to roll into every obstacle that it can find.
- Details and What's included -
I think I fell in love with the backpack mounted vacuum design years ago, while working on an occupied job site. I had never seen one of these things before. Sitting unused in the corner of a storage room, I thought the backpack straps were and awesome idea. I have to admit that I vacuumed for WAY longer than I needed to. Ever since that experience, every time I would sweep the floors of our house, the image of that vacuum would pop up in my head.
I came across the Hoover c2401 whilst browsing the internet one day and was surprised by both the amount of positive reviews and the fact it was on sale. Pretty much completely an impulse buy due to the pandemic and free time, I went ahead and completed my purchase and anxiously awaited my delivery.
On of the things that got me to bite on this model is the fact that it’s a commercial model and carries a two year commercial warranty.
It also weighs less than ten pounds and claims the harness was designed by a chiropractor. There is extra padding on the lower back portion as well as sternum straps. A large velcro waist strap helps to avoid putting all of the weight on your shoulders.
The unit also is supposed to operate at less than 66dB. The average vacuum operates at 70dB-80dB, so this is at least a full 3dB less than most models. (An increase of 3dB doubles the sound intensity).
A HEPA media filter is included, as well as a re-useable bag that sits over the filter.
The Hoover C2401 comes with quite a few attachments (see picture). There are two wide attachments for vacuuming rugs, carpet and hard floors. One smaller attachment that works well for vacuuming furniture as well as pet beds, automotive upholstery and smaller cloth items. The small circular brushed attachment works great for ceilings, ceiling fans, exhaust fan grills, door frames and any hard surface you come across. The crevice tool is long enough to reach pretty much anywhere and is about twelve inches long. This tool is almost 1/2″ wide, however, so it may not fit in every place you need it to.
- operation and impressions -
Once I had everything unboxed, I began fitting all of the parts together. While Getting the unit on and adjusted took some time, I had everything opened, on and ready to go in about fifteen minutes, which I think is pretty reasonable.
I began fumbling for the on/off switch with my left hand. It didn’t take long for my fingers to feel the large rocker switch as I turned the unit on. As the motor whirred to life, I was pleasantly surprised with the sound level of the C2401. While there is no mistaking that you have a vacuum running, it is quiet enough that you can easily listen to music or have a conversation without yelling.
My next concern was the suction. Would I still encounter the stubborn hairs that refuse to be picked up and decide to drift at their leisure? I was relieved to see that any dust, hair or debris that was in even close proximity to the end of the attachment was promptly sucked up and spit out in the container. The brushes on the hard floor attachment appear to serve both as a way to gather debris so the vacuum can pick it up and act as a buffer to keep your floors from getting scratched or damaged. The rug and furniture attachments worked equally well, leaving those nice vacuum lines behind as the fabric raises from the suction. I do find myself occasionally pulling the wands apart to vacuum the brushes of the the attachments to remove any hair or dust that gets caught in them. This is a simple process and takes only a few seconds.
I found the Hoover C2401 comfortable to wear for long periods of time. I had it on for over an hour the first I vacuumed as I was trying it on everything I could find. The long cord allowed me to really give the house a good cleaning and even though my neck was hurting from something I did earlier in the week, wearing this vacuum did not aggravate that injury. One thing to keep in mind when wearing this vacuum is you can possibly run into things such as door frames and pictures when turning. This happened to me much less than I thought it would, however.
- Attachment tip -
Some of the poor reviews mention that the attachments do not fit. I believe in most cases, the people who are having issues do not have the attachments hooked up correctly. If you look at the pictures above and below. You can see that there is a compression ring inside the threaded attachment cap. When you loosen the cap, the ring expands allowing the groove on the attachment to slide past the ring and into the wand. When you tighten the cap, the ring is compressed locking the attachment into place. (The attachment may still feel lose, but this is by design because it allows the attachment to swivel freely when vacuuming).
- Additionally -
Another thing worth mentioning is the unit comes with 50′ power cord that can be easily replaced if it becomes worn out or damaged. The motor vents on the back of the unit and is designed to blow the heat up and away from the user. This seems to work rather well, as I never felt that I was having exhaust blown on me. Furthermore, the power switch is reachable while the unit is being worn, which comes in very handy.
The Hoover C2401 is also very easy to empty. Simply undo the two clamps on the top and the bag lifts right out. I was really impressed that the bag filtered all of the dust and the inside of the vacuum looked spotless. There is a high quality rubber seal that I’m sure aids in this process. I take it outside and shake the bag into a garbage can. After that I lightly brush the remaining debris off and put the unit back together.
PROS:
COMFORTABLE
POWERFUL
EASY TO USE
QUIET
COMMERCIAL WARRANTY
CONS:
PRICEY
BAG MAY NEED TO BE REPLACED